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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27885220">close your eyes and trust me</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/potsticker1234/pseuds/potsticker1234'>potsticker1234</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Azula lets her walls down, Canon Compliant, F/F, First Kiss, Fluff, Happy Azula (Avatar), Lesbian Azula (Avatar), tyzula - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 15:46:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,682</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27885220</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/potsticker1234/pseuds/potsticker1234</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Days away from the attack on the outer wall, Azula is brimming with uncertainties. Ty Lee shows her support in the best way she knows how.</p>
<p>(Ty Lee can't start a campfire to save her life.)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Azula/Ty Lee (Avatar)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>88</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>close your eyes and trust me</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hefting her bag off her shoulder, Azula surveyed the clearing in front of her. The sky was a beautiful orange color as the sun went down. Ty Lee liked the way it bounced off the golden fire pin in her dark hair. “This area looks adequate. Let’s make camp here for the night.”</p>
<p>Ty Lee dropped her belongings and dramatically fell backwards into the soft grass, “Oh thank you, Azula! Any further and my feet would have fallen off!”</p>
<p>Mai wordlessly set up her bedroll as Azula ignored the comment to scout out their surroundings. Though seemingly in the middle of nowhere, they could never be too cautious in Earth Kingdom territory.</p>
<p>“Ty Lee!” the Princess snapped, “Pick yourself off the ground and set up the campfire.”</p>
<p>She gave Azula a mock salute and bounded off into the forest to collect firewood. Even though she sounded so commanding, Ty Lee knew it was just the irritation of the past few days getting to her. She learned to never take a tired Azula too seriously.</p>
<p>“She’s going to get lost,” Mai didn’t look up from her bag.</p>
<p>“Might as well have her put that extra energy to use,” Azula answered, “I’m going to make sure the perimeter is secure, you’ll make sure she isn’t dragged off by a platypus bear?”</p>
<p>Mai’s eyes narrowed slightly, was that a hint of concern in her voice? “Wouldn’t dream of it.”</p>
<p>Several minutes later Ty Lee came back with quite the impressive pile of sticks and tinder. It clattered to the ground in a loud bang, Ty Lee wiped the dirt from her hands, “Glad that’s done!”</p>
<p>“Didn’t Azula ask you to make the fire?” </p>
<p>Ty Lee regarded Mai and then the pile of wood. She tried to arrange the sticks in a pretty little tent but her attempts were futile. The sticks collapsed one last time before Ty Lee kicked at the whole operation. An unphased Mai dodged the incoming debris as Ty Lee apologized to her friend.</p>
<p>Once again fiddling with the failed campfire, Ty Lee managed to build a fairly decent campfire. She dug through her bag nearly emptying all of its contents onto the ground before Mai threw the pouch of spark rocks at her. She leaned over the pile and scraped one side against the other. Though very pretty, the dazzling sparks were doing nothing to ignite the wood. Heat built up behind her forehead before she gave up entirely.</p>
<p>“This is ridiculous, Mai, your spark rocks are faulty and I’m going to go find Azula! She’ll know how to get a proper fire going.”</p>
<p>And with that, the pink blur disappeared into the woods before Mai could even sigh.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Ty Lee was quickly entranced with the flora and fauna of the Earth Kingdom. There were trees and flowers she had never seen in her life before, and oh how she loved the sound of the songbirds flying overhead. She thought for a second that maybe life in the Fire Nation wasn’t all it was made out to be. That maybe she’d like to settle down out here in the countryside where she could truly be a free spirit. That maybe she’d like to settle down with a certain someone.</p>
<p>The thought ran through her mind as she watched the leaves blow in the wind. How long had she been feeling things for her friend? It felt like ever since she reunited with Azula that there were feelings below the surface but she just didn’t know what it all meant. Sure, Azula had borderline coerced her to leave the circus, but maybe this was life’s way of bringing them back together. Nothing like a not-so-subtle hint from the cosmos?</p>
<p>She thought through the reasons why she liked Azula, or rather what there wasn’t to like about Azula. She was perfect in every way possible and Ty Lee could not get enough of her.</p>
<p>She reveled in the natural beauty of her surroundings for just a moment longer when she saw a familiar form perched on a rock. Azula nearly blended into the picture, as still as the earth beneath her. </p>
<p>Ty Lee made her movements loud and deliberate so as not to scare her, not that anyone could sneak up on her anyways. “I thought you were scouting the area?”</p>
<p>“And I thought you were starting the campfire,” Azula scooted over on the rock to make room for her.</p>
<p>When the girl sat down, her leg brushed against Azula’s for a split second and it sent shivers up her spine. </p>
<p>“Yeah, about that fire,” Ty Lee nervously chuckled, “it wasn’t behaving.”</p>
<p>Azula opened up her palm and let an azure flame dance across it, “I didn’t know you could make it behave, are you secretly a firebender?”</p>
<p>This was the first time in the past week that Ty Lee had been able to get Azula in a joking mood again. Though she was naturally an uptight girl, something else was bothering her. Not daring to ruin her mood, Ty Lee simply stared at the flames and relished in its warmth. She’d never admit it to her face, but she loved that Azula could bend blue fire. Not just for its elegant color or raw power, but because it was so uniquely Azula’s in which it represented her determination and confidence and total control over firebending. </p>
<p>Too busy analyzing the flame, she had not noticed how close her body was drifting towards Azula. They were practically breathing the same air and she thought she saw a tinge of red across the Princess’s face. And that face was breathtaking. She loved the way her bangs framed it, and how her jawline looked sharp enough to puncture the hull of a battleship, and how her eyes looked like pools of honey reflecting in the evening sunlight. </p>
<p>And she especially loved how Azula’s face looked years younger when Ty Lee was her focus. She always put up such an austere disposition to the rest of the world, she never knew who she could trust. But when Ty Lee was the center of her attention, she allowed her eyes to soften and her mouth to relax into a small hint of a smile.</p>
<p>Before long, Azula broke the silence and sounded so unsure of herself, “We’re only a few days out from Ba Sing Se and I’ve run through the plan a hundred times over in my head.”</p>
<p>Ty Lee gave her space to continue her thoughts.</p>
<p>“But I just can’t help wondering what happens if we, if I, don’t succeed.”</p>
<p>Her shoulders sagged and Ty Lee knew that it must be immensely difficult to be so young yet have such high expectations. No one had dared attack the outer wall of Ba Sing Se since the siege by the Dragon of the West and look how that turned out. There were few things Azula actually hated, but failure was one of them. </p>
<p>Ty Lee wished she could give Azula a respite from that responsibility, she ought to be able to just be a girl, not a war machine nor a fearsome conqueror. Just Azula.</p>
<p>She realized she had been staring for far too long when Azula asked her why she was looking at her funny and if she was making fun of her.</p>
<p>Ignoring her question, Ty Lee asked her to close her eyes. Her eyelids fluttered shut and Ty Lee took in how perfect she looked. Rosey cheeks and soft lips and the way her hair followed the slight wind; she wanted to savor this moment for a hundred lifetimes over.</p>
<p>She wondered why Azula had been so willing to open up about her doubts, usually it took a lot of prying for Ty Lee to even get her to share a fraction of what she just did. She could always ask Azula later about it, right now she was focused on the space between them and how desperately she wanted to close it.</p>
<p>And so she did. She placed a gentle hand on Azula’s cheek and tilted her face towards her. She leaned in and kissed her as if to say she would help carry Azula’s burdens if she just let her.</p>
<p>The kiss was every bit as magical as she had hoped it would be. It seemed as if Azula melted into her touch as she placed her other hand on her neck. She wondered if Azula could pick up on her unspoken trust and support, and telling from the way Azula pressed into her, she knew the feelings were mutual.</p>
<p>When she pulled away, Azula was furiously blushing and her words came out as a whisper, “What was that for?”</p>
<p>“I’m not really good with words and planning but I didn’t want to make you feel worse and you just looked so perfect sitting there, I couldn’t help myself,” Ty Lee removed her arms from around Azula’s neck, “I hope that was okay?”</p>
<p>Azula searched her face for any signs of falsehood and when she could find none, she grabbed Ty Lee’s hands and put them back around her neck, “I wouldn’t mind if you couldn’t help yourself some more.”</p>
<p>She grinned and leaned back in, capturing her for another sweet kiss.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Took you guys long enough,” Mai noticed the two girls finally emerging from the woods and how they were walking closer than normal. Mai chose not to comment on the pep in their step or the slight smudge of lipstick on Ty Lee, “I thought you’d been captured by the Avatar or something exciting.”</p>
<p>Taking Azula’s hand by surprise, Ty Lee pranced around to the abandoned pile of sticks arranged in what she called a worthy campfire. She placed Azula’s hand next to the wood and looked at her expectantly.</p>
<p>Azula lit the campfire with the touch of her finger and Ty Lee loved the way she allowed the flames to burn off from bright blue to orange, the warm glow against her skin a reminder that in rare moments like these, Azula was able to let her guard down. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>because... it's so sharp</p></blockquote></div></div>
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